1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to remote controllers for a personal computer and other Internet devices, and more particularly to a microphone/speaker-contained wireless remote control system for an Internet device and a method for controlling the operation of a remote controller therein, in which the remote controller is adapted to transmit and receive digital signals to/from the Internet device.
2. Description of the Prior Art
With a growing interest in the Internet, the number of users connecting to the Internet through personal computers is recently on an explosively increasing trend. According to such a trend, television receiver manufacturers have developed television receivers capable of readily connecting viewers to the Internet therethrough.
As a result of the above developments, there have been marketed Internet television receiver products having an Internet phone function, a singing room function and other functions in addition to the original television receiver function.
However, in one such conventional Internet television receiver, because an Internet phone connected to the Internet television receiver is of either a wired type or wired/wireless type, the user has the trouble of moving to the Internet phone to speak over it.
On the other hand, in another conventional Internet television receiver, the user can connect a general telephone directly to the Internet television receiver, dial a telephone number using a remote controller and speak over it This technique does not utilize an Internet phone, but merely couples an existing telephone function with the Internet television receiver. For this reason, a separate telephone cable must be provided to allow the user to speak over the telephone while using an Internet function.
Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a microphone/speaker-contained wireless remote control system for an Internet device and a method for controlling the operation of a remote controller therein, in which the remote controller comprises a microphone, speaker and signal modulation/demodulation circuit, for transmitting and receiving digital signals to/from the Internet device, thereby allowing the user to make a wireless telephone conversation over the remote controller or sing using it as in a singing room, resulting in a convenience to the user.
In accordance with the present invention, the above and other objects can be accomplished by a provision of a microphone/speaker-contained wireless remote control system for an Internet device, comprising a system body and a remote controller, each of which includes a circuitry for performing a voice compression operation and modulating an analog audio signal into a digital signal. The remote controller further includes a speaker for transferring an audio signal from the Internet device to the user, and a microphone for receiving a user""s voice. In the case where a singing room function is selected, the user""s voice received by the microphone is processed in a digital manner. Radio frequency signals are transmitted and received between the remote controller and Internet device through antennas.